June 25, 2009 The Chicago Bulls selected James Johnson, a 6-9, 245 pound forward from Wake Forest with the 16th pick in NBA Draft 2009. Later in the evening, with the 26th overall selection, the Bulls drafted Taj Gibson, a 6-9, 225 pound forward from USC.
As a sophomore at Wake Forest, Johnson averaged 15.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game as the Demon Deacons went 24-7. He became the third player in Wake Forest history to leave early for the NBA, joining Rodney Rogers in 1993 and Chris Paul in 2005.
As a junior at USC, Gibson averaged 14.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game while shooting 60.1 percent from the field. He earned All-Conference Second Team honors, while also being named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.
"If Im available at 16 and they want me, I would love to play here," Johnson told Bulls.com following his pre-draft workout on June 15. "You see the six trophies and everyones name on the banners, like Jordan, Pippen, Paxson and Armstrong, and hopefully some day we could hang a few with James Johnson and Derrick Rose on them."
Chicago's 16th pick was the team's own first-round pick (the Bulls won a tie-breaker with the 76ers), while the Bulls acquired the 26th selection from Oklahoma City in their Feb. 19 deal that sent Thabo Sefolosha to the Thunder. The Bulls do not own a second round pick this year, as a result of their six-player trade with the Cavaliers on Feb. 21, 2008.
